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The Los Angeles Chargers made a bold hire for their head coach opening, poaching Michigan head coach Jim Harbaugh out of college football and making him the new leader of the franchise following Brandon Staley's firing in December.
Harbaugh is a former NFL head coach who spent four seasons with the San Francisco 49ers from 2011 to 2014. He took the team to three straight NFC Championship Game appearances before a fallout with general manager Trent Baalke made him leave the team. He was a coveted head coach for many teams during his period in college football.
NFL fans were excited to see Harbaugh landing with the Chargers, especially as he goes to the AFC West. Andy Reid and Patrick Mahomes have put a huge dominance in the division, and for the fans, this will be a hard thing to change:
Jim Harbaugh's coaching record in the NFL
During his four years with the 49ers, Jim Harbaugh put up a respected 49-22-1 record, with an extra 5-3 record in the playoffs. He won the NFC West twice, but also made the playoffs one season in the wild card. In those three years, he got to at least the NFC Championship Game, losing to the New York Giants (2011) and the Seattle Seahawks (2013) but beating the Atlanta Falcons (2012).
Harbaugh is remembered for the instant changes he brought to the 49ers. He first had Alex Smith as his quarterback, with the 2005's first-overall pick struggling badly in the league. Once Harbaugh took over, Smith's career started to trend upward, and he became a quarterback good enough to spend another decade in the league.
Jim Harbaugh also made the call to permanently replace Smith with Colin Kaepernick midway through the 2012 season. The 49ers had a 6-2 record then, but the starter suffered a concussion and Kaepernick took over in a Monday Night Football game. His performance was so good, and he added so much to the offense as a runner, that the head coach decided to ride the rest of the season with him.
The 2012 season ended with family heartbreak. The 49ers made the Super Bowl against the Baltimore Ravens, but lost that game 34-31. The Ravens were coached by John Harbaugh, Jim's brother, who's still their head coach to this day.
